''The Junction Boys'' is a 2002 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

written and directed by Mike Robe, based on

Jim Dent James Lacey Dent (born May 9, 1939) is an American professional golfer. Dent was born in the golf mecca of Augusta, Georgia, home of the Masters Tournament, though as an African American he wouldn't have been allowed onto the Augusta National co ...

's 2001 book of the same name. It is about the

Junction Boys The Junction Boys were the "survivors" of Texas A&M Aggies football coach Bear Bryant's 10-day summer camp in Junction, Texas, beginning September 1, 1954. The ordeal became the subject of a 2001 book by Jim Dent, ''The Junction Boys'',Tom Berenger Tom Berenger (born Thomas Michael Moore; May 31, 1949) is an American actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Staff Sergeant Bob Barnes in ''Platoon'' (1986). He is also known for playing Jake ...

Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...

. It aired on

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

on December 14, 2002.

Cast

Production

Filming took place in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, for budgetary reasons. Except for the American Berenger, the cast members were Australian, and were coached by a Texas-born

dialect coach A dialect coach is an acting coach who helps an actor design the voice and speech of a character in the context of an on-camera (film, television or commercial), stage (theatre, musical theatre, opera, etc.), radio or animation voiceover production. ...

to use correct Texan accents. To bypass the differences between

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

, the filmmakers recruited players from American football clubs in Australia for the football scenes.

References

External links

* at

ESPN Original Entertainment ESPN Films, formerly known as ESPN Original Entertainment (EOE), is an American production company which produces and distributes sports films and documentaries. It is owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which ow ...

* 2002 television films 2002 films 2002 biographical drama films 2000s American films 2000s biographical drama films 2000s English-language films 2000s sports drama films American biographical drama films American drama television films American football films American sports drama films Biographical television films Biographical films about educators Biographical films about sportspeople Cultural depictions of players of American football ESPN Films films Films based on non-fiction books Films directed by Mike Robe Films scored by Steve Dorff Films set in 1954 Films set in Texas Films shot in Sydney Sports television films Television films based on books Texas A&M Aggies football {{US-tv-film-stub